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FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman

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FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman is a new show on PBS Kids GO! that premiered Memorial Day 2006 (May 29, 2006). It is made by many of the same producers as ZOOM, which ended its 7-season run in 2005. FETCH! is built on the same concept as ZOOM, namely real kids doing educational activities. FETCH! is a parody of the typical reality TV show, with a host dispensing challenges.

FETCH! is produced by WGBH Boston. Major funding for Fetch! is provided by the National Science Foundation, and public television viewers. Additional funding ($200K) is provided by The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations. Corporate funding is provided by Arby's and Greendog Clothes for Kids.

Contents

Synopsis & Characters

The host of the show is an animated dog named Ruff Ruffman (voice played by Jim Conroy; animation by Global Mechanic Animation in Vancouver). The show is a blend of live-action and animation- the host is animated, but most of the show is live-action. [link]

The cast consists of six preteen contestants (commonly called on the show as FETCHers). In each episode, Ruff sets one or more of the contestants out on a surprise mission regarding a specific educational theme (e.g. Thirteen Colonies, meteorology). The contestants do not know what the challenge is until the challenge starts. FETCH! teaches viewers about different lifestyles/careers through demonstration based on the day's theme (e.g. in an episode about meteorology, a contestant has a news anchor show her weather patterns on a weather doppler radar). Points are awarded to contestants at the end of each episode, and a winner is crowned. At the end of the season, the contestant with the most points from all the episodes wins a so-called Unbelievably Fabulous Grand Prize after a series of competitions. Normally, one or more of the kids (said to be randomly selected by the Fetch 3000) stay behind at the studio and answer trivia questions about the missions to win points instead. By the end of the season, each contestant has had an equal number of challenges.

Ruff Ruffman

Ruff Ruffman is an animated, pretentious, and lovable dog that is the host of the show who conducts the challenges from the Fetch 3000, a computer that is also animated. Because he is animated, he does not exist in reality, but in the animated segments of the show, his personality is revealed. He is very scared of cats. He has a crush on a poodle named Charlene who lives next door to him, but has complained about his halitosis. Since Ruff supposedly won a contract to produce a reality TV program, he is constantly fussing about the stresses of running one. He is notable for loving all food, particularly pseudo American-Chinese take-out. As a result, he is also a parody of American obesity.

Grandma Ruffman

Grandma Ruffman, voiced by Estelle Harris, is Ruff Ruffman's exceptionally stubborn grandmother who appeared in one episode. Like Ruff, she is also pretentious, and animated in Macromedia Flash. As a writer, she attempted to market her products on her grandson's show, and like a grandmother, she constantly nags and fusses about insignificant things.

Others

Henry is Ruff's boss. He is merely only mentioned when Ruff receives phone calls. Henry provides Ruff with the show's budget, and oversees Ruff's spendings.

Murray is one of Ruff's cousins. He runs the behind-the-scenes technical work, and is constantly blamed for minor problems regarding the show.

Spot Spotnik is a neighbor of Ruff. His only mention is when Ruff refers to the day Spot cheated him out of an opportunity to audition for a profession as a clown.

Contestants & Episodes

Season 1

Contestants

Episodes

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.
There are 20 episodes in season 1.
  1. "3-2-1 Blast Off!" (05/29/06) - While Ruff Ruffman scrambles to get ready for the first episode, Anna, Julia, and Khalil go on a hunt for all nine planets in a scale model of the Solar System scattered throughout the "lovely city of Boston". Taylor, Noah, and Brian stay in Studio G (Ruff's garage).
  2. "Good Dancing and Bad Teeth" (05/29/06) - Ruff Ruffman sends Julia and Khalil to learn how to dance the waltz, while Anna and Brian investigate whether dog mouths are cleaner than human mouths. Noah and Taylor stay behind.
  3. "How To Get Out Your Inner Hip Hop" (05/29/06) - Anna learned hip hop dance, and Noah, Khalil, and Julia cooked for zoo animals. Taylor, and Brian stay behind.
FETCH! teaches viewers about different lifestyles and careers through demonstration. In this case, a contestant is doing chores as a colonial farmer.
Enlarge
FETCH! teaches viewers about different lifestyles and careers through demonstration. In this case, a contestant is doing chores as a colonial farmer.

  1. "Cats? I Thought You Said Kites!" (05/29/06) - Noah and Brian build a kite to deliver a dog biscuit, and Taylor, and Anna attempt to teach cats to fetch. Julia and Khalil stay behind.
  2. "Ye Olde Colonial Episode" (06/05/06) - Ruff forces the kids to give up their electronics for a day in 1627 on Plimoth Plantation.
  3. "Saturday Night With A Slight Fever" (06/06/06) - Taylor, Brian, and Noah are required to make a music video with some easily-recognizable stars - their grandparents while staying under a budget. Anna, Julia, and Khalil stay behind.
  4. "To Bee or Not to Bee" (06/07/06) - Ruff gets stuck in a bee costume when filming an advertisement for FETCH!. Brian and Khalil learn to be beekeepers, while Julia and Anna learn to windsurf. Taylor and Noah stay in Studio G.
  5. "B.L.T. For Breakfast?" (06/08/06) - Ruff must sell his new beverage. Brian braves a day as a short-order cook in a local diner, while Taylor, Khalil, and Noah design a new ice-cream flavor. Anna and Julia are left behind.
  6. "The Mystery of the Missing Thing in the Haunted Castle" (06/12/06) - Ruff forces the kids to retrieve a lost invention in the castle of inventor John Hays Hammond, Jr.
  7. "This Old... Lemonade Stand" (06/13/06) - Ruff accidentally reduces the show's budget to 13¢. Norm Abram, one of the hosts of This Old House, another program on PBS, teaches Anna, and Noah to build a lemonade stand. Anna and Noah must also test thermal insulation to sell lemonade as a fundraiser. Meanwhile, the rest stay in Studio G and help bail Ruff out with his financial problems.
  8. "It's Raining Cats and Dogs" (06/14/06) - Ruff is confused when a weather forecast predicts clear skies, but there is thunder. Taylor learns to forecast the weather, conduct interviews, and give a live weather report in front of a greenscreen. The boys paint a mural in Jamaica Plain for the mayor of Boston. Julia and Anna stay behind once more.
  9. "That Doesn't Float My Boat" (06/15/06) - Ruff Ruffman floods the doghouse when trying to relax. Julia, Anna, and Khalil build a boat out of trash and race it. Taylor, Noah, and Brian stay behind.
  10. "Send in the Clowns" (06/19/06) - It is revealed that Ruff wanted to be a clown, but was cheated out by Spot Spotnik (see character list). Julia, Taylor, Noah, and Anna build water balloon launchers for revenge. Brian learns to be a clown. Khalil is alone in the garage.
  11. "Grandma Ruffman's Recipe for Success" (06/20/06) - Under Grandma Ruffman's marketing advice, Khalil learns to be a stand-up comedian, and Taylor, Noah, and Brian cook Grandma Ruffman's recipes on a farm to learn about energy transfers in a New England food chain. Julia and Anna are left behind.
  12. "Tryin' Chef" (06/21/06) - Ruff is tired of his food. Taylor, Brian, Julia, and Khalil compete against each other as chefs - Iron Chef style to cook up new recipes for Ruff. Noah and Anna are left behind again, but help bail Ruff out.
  13. "Don't Put the Kart Before the Sea Lion" (06/22/06) - Ruff is training for an interactive driving test monitored by the DMV, but crashes into a sea lion tank. Taylor trains sea lions; Julia helps in a pit crew for a junior go-karter. Anna, Khalil, Noah, and Brian stay behind.
  14. "Relaxin' with Ruff" (06/26/06) - Ruff decides to calm down from the stresses of running a show. The kids learn to relax with yoga and to calculate heart rate (pulses in 15 sec * 4). Next, they mathematically measure their "fear factor" at an amusement park.
  15. "Scat Cat, Scat" (06/27/06) - A cat steals Ruff's kneeboard. Noah learns to kneeboard. The girls track down wild animals using various clues, especially scat. Khalil and Brian stay in the studio.
  16. "Ruff Ruffman Spaces Out" (06/28/06) - The FETCHers go to space camp when the FETCH satellite breaks down.
  17. "The Dogcathalon Finale" (06/29/06) - Three rounds of competition will pit the FETCHers against each other. Anna was crowned FETCH! seasonal champion.

Season 2

PBS has already approved a second season of "Fetch!", which WGBH executives say is rare for a new show in the public-television world[link]. It is currently being taped.

New Episodes

Season two is currently being taped. Season one has been completely shown; there are no new episodes currently airing.

Reruns still air on weekdays at 5:30 PM in Boston on WGBH 2. Air times vary for each individual PBS station. Re-runs from Monday used to air on Fridays at the same time. In some markets, the show airs on weekends.

Points

The contestants out on challenges each have the potential to win up to 100 points, and the contestants that are left behind in the studio have a chance to win a maximum of 50 points in the Half-Time Quiz Show in which they are required to answer 10 questions, 5 points each right answer. The questions are about events that occurred during the challenges. There is also a Fetch Fairness Guarantee; every contestant will have had an equal number of challenges before the final episode.

The Scores

Scores are now an accurate representation of contestant ability at this point, as all contestants have had as many challenges as others, and therefore equal opportunities to earn points. Data from previous days can be found on the official FETCH! website (see links section).

Season 1

Auditions

To try out for FETCH!, kids are required to be between the ages of 10 and 14 and be able to live in the greater Boston area over the summer, during school vacations, and few weekends during the school year. FETCHers must be able to be filmed without missing school. The next auditions will be held in Boston next winter. More information will be available on the FETCH! website in time.

Trivia

External Links

Current PBS Kids Shows (as of May 2006)
Barney & Friends | The Berenstain Bears *| Between the Lions | Boohbah | Caillou | Clifford the Big Red Dog* | Clifford's Puppy Days | Curious George | Dragon Tales | George Shrinks* | It's a Big Big World | Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks | Jay Jay: The Jet Plane | Mister Rogers' Neighborhood* | Reading Rainbow | Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat* | Sesame Street | Teletubbies* | Zoboomafoo* |
PBS Kids GO! programs: Arthur* | Cyberchase | Dragonfly TV | FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman¹ | Maya & Miguel | Postcards from Buster* | ZOOM¹ |
* No new episodes are being produced, yet many major PBS stations televise air reruns
List does not include shows from networks airing PBS Kids shows but not funded directly from PBS such as KLCS shows.

 

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